Women in a unique position in the context of India

The Dongriakhond are organised to conserve their ancestral lands and way of life; they are descendants of the oldest inhabitants of India. They live in small villages around Mount NiyamDongar, the Mountain of the Law, a sacred site for them, on whose fertile slopes they go about farming and shepherding.

In 2013 they won —at the moment— a long, hard legal battle against Mining giant Vedanta Resources to save their sacred hills, managing to stop bauxite extraction there. The support of International Survival was essential for the Supreme Court to decide whether permission for mining exploitation of the Mountain of the Law should be given by the Dongrias themselves, who replied with a resounding “No”. In 2017 they again underwent harassment and abuse to expel them from their lands, but received no official protection.

Dongria women can inherit keep and dispose of property, choose a partner and request divorce. They share with the men in the production of food and in selling excess at the market, and they manage water on their own. Young women adorn themselves typically with hairpins, necklaces and three nose-rings, whereas the men wear two.